CHOOSE PROJECT
Brief
he Standard needed a public-facing building register that could sit within its existing website and give users a clear way to explore registered buildings, understand their performance and access detailed project information.
The original brief was to create the register directly within the existing website builder. As the requirements developed, however, it became clear that the volume of information, filtering options and level of control required went beyond what the website platform could comfortably support.
Rather than compromise the experience, we recommended creating the register as a bespoke web application that could then be embedded seamlessly within the main website.
Top challenges we overcame
Working beyond the website platform
The original implementation route couldn't provide the flexibility or functionality the register required, so we needed to rethink the technical approach.CHALLENGE ONE
Working beyond the website platform
CHALLENGE TWO
Creating useful filtering
The register needed controls that could help visitors narrow large datasets and find relevant projects without adding unnecessary friction.
The solution needed to support a growing number of registrations without requiring the interface or underlying structure to be continually rebuilt.
CHALLENGE THREE
Building for future growth
What we did
We first explored how the register could work within the existing website, developing the proposed information structure, user journeys and approach to displaying project data.
Once the limitations of that route became apparent, we redesigned the solution around a custom web application.
We created a structured database and front-end experience that could handle considerably more information while giving us greater control over how users searched, filtered and viewed registered buildings.
The interface was designed around usability rather than simply presenting the underlying dataset. Clear listing cards provide an accessible overview, filters help users refine what they're looking for, and individual project pages organise more detailed information into a logical hierarchy.
We then integrated the finished application into the existing website so users could access the register without feeling they had moved into a separate digital product.
Result
The final register gives the Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard a purpose-built platform for showcasing registered projects while retaining the familiarity of its existing website.
By moving beyond the constraints of the original website builder, we were able to create a much more flexible, scalable and useful experience, one designed around the information users actually need to explore rather than the limitations of the platform hosting it.
Brief
Way Marketing was asked to develop the visual system behind the new certification, beginning with the performance evaluation graphic and extending across the evaluation report, certification certificate and accreditation marks.
The challenge was bigger than designing a single graphic, because the system needed to communicate different levels of performance immediately, work across multiple formats and scales, and give successful certification a distinctive visual identity of its own.
Top challenges we overcame
Multiple categories needed to carry equal weight while clearly showing whether each criterion had been achieved, not achieved or was not applicable.
CHALLENGE ONE
Making a complex evaluation easy to understand
CHALLENGE TWO
Moving beyond a conventional chart
A traditional pie chart offered the right underlying logic, but would have felt generic. We needed something more distinctive and ownable.
The evaluation graphic needed an immediate visual connection with the organisation, rather than feeling like a separate certification product.
CHALLENGE THREE
Building the existing brand into the system
Performance evaluation graphic
The client's early concept used a bento-style grid, with individual criteria represented as separate blocks.
However, the idea behind the certification was inherently about completing the whole: organisations needed to satisfy all relevant areas before becoming certified.
That led us towards the logic of a pie chart, but without using the familiar circular format.
Instead, we developed an octagonal evaluation graphic inspired by the geometry of the existing brand identity. Each segment carries equal visual weight, reinforcing the fact that every criterion matters equally while creating a distinctive visual asset that belongs to the client.
The result takes something people already intuitively understand — a segmented progress graphic — and turns it into something more recognisable and ownable.
Status and colour system
We developed a simple visual language that allows users to understand performance without having to study the supporting information.
A traffic-light-inspired system differentiates between criteria that have been achieved and those that haven't, while a hatched grey treatment identifies areas that aren't applicable.
The colours were developed around the client's existing palette while considering accessibility and clarity across different applications.
We then gave the client's established teal a specific role within the system.
Rather than simply using it decoratively, teal represents the point at which every relevant criterion has been achieved and the organisation becomes certified. This creates a clear visual progression from evaluation through to successful certification.
Icon family
The client already had ideas for several of the icons associated with the assessment criteria, but they hadn't been designed as a coherent family.
Some used filled shapes while others were outlined. Others became difficult to recognise at smaller sizes.
We refined and redrew the complete set, establishing consistent proportions, line treatments and visual principles so every icon felt part of the same system.
This also meant they could remain legible when used independently within smaller interface elements and the certification register.
Modular design system
Although the final evaluation graphic appears deliberately simple, it needed to work across several very different environments.
We therefore developed it as a modular design system rather than a single fixed asset.
The complete graphic can communicate overall performance within reports and evaluation materials. Reduced versions retain the same visual language at smaller sizes, while individual segments can operate almost like icons or status buttons within the certification register.
That flexibility allows the certification to remain visually consistent wherever organisations encounter it.
Evaluation report
We also designed the supporting performance evaluation report.
The priority here was clarity. Rather than allowing the visual identity to compete with the information, we created a restrained, structured layout that makes results easy to navigate and understand.
The evaluation graphic, icon family, colour system and existing brand elements work together throughout the document, creating continuity between the assessment itself and the wider certification identity.
Certificate and certification emblem
Once an organisation achieves all the relevant criteria, the system changes from performance evaluation to recognition.
We designed the certificate around the client's distinctive teal, reinforcing the relationship between that colour and successful certification.
We also developed a dedicated certification emblem that organisations could display once certified. The preferred design uses a simple roundel, giving the certification a recognisable mark that feels credible while still providing a sense of achievement.
Subtle graphic details, watermarks and the new iconography were incorporated into the certificate to make it feel considered and distinctive without compromising its functional purpose.
The emblem was also designed modularly. Alongside the primary roundel, we created a rectangular version better suited to website footers, document footers and other restricted spaces.
Result
What began as a requirement for a performance evaluation graphic became a complete visual language for the certification.
The new system connects assessment, progress and successful certification through one consistent visual journey. Organisations can understand their performance quickly, while the client has a flexible set of assets that can work across reports, registers, certificates, websites and supporting communications.
Most importantly, the design makes the point of certification immediately visible.
Individual criteria build towards the whole. Once every relevant area has been achieved, the visual language shifts to the client's distinctive teal — turning an evaluation framework into a recognisable mark of certification.
Case study
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